Means for uniting concrete reenforcements



June-3,,-. 1924. 1,496,178

v .1. c. SHEPHERD MEANS FOR UNITING CONCRETE REENFORCEMENTS Filed Aug. 19. 192] Inventor James C. shgpherd Patented June 3, 1924.

UNETED STATES I rescue PATENT OFFICE.

JAMES C. SHEPHERD, OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI, ASSIGNOR TO LACLEDE STEEL COM- PANY, OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI, A CORPORATION OF MISSOURI.

MEANS FOR UNITING- CONCRETE REENFORCEMENTS.

Application filed August 19, 1921. Serial No. 493,541.

To all whom it may concern.

Be it known that I, JAMES C. SHEPHERD, a citizen of the United States of America, and a resident of the city of St. Louis and State of Missouri, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Means for Uniting Concrete' Reenforcements, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, .reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification.

This invention relates to improvements in means for uniting concrete reenforcements, the main object being toprovide a simple means whereby reinforcing elements can be easily and quickly assembled to produce a strong reenforcement having its several ele ments accurately located in predetermined positions. The invention is especially adapted for use in a reinforcing structure having a series of reinforcing elements and a bar crossing the several reinforcing elements. For example a well known type of reenforcement comprises a number of bars located within a long spiral and engaging the inner faces of the. coils of the spiral. These coils should be accurately spaced and securely held to prevent accidental displacement of the coils relative to the long bars.

Prior to this invention, the long bars have been placed within the long spiral and then secured to the coils of the spiral, usually by means of numerous individual attaching devices. According to the preferred form of the present invention, the long bars are merely inserted through eyes in a spacing device on the spiral, and the eyes are then contracted to securely unite the several elements of the reenforcement. Theeyes are preferably in the form of coils having oppositely disposed abutments adapted to receive a simple contracting tool whereby they can be readily contracted to grip the bars.

With the foregoing and other objects in view, the invention comprises the novel construction, combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter more specifically described and illustrated in the accompanying drawings wherein is shown. the preferred embodi ment of the invention. However, it is to be understood that the invention comprehends changes, variations and modifications which come within the scope of the claims hereunto appended.

Fig. I is a horizontal section through a metal reenforcement equipped with a spacing device embodying the features of this invention.

Fig. II is a fragmentary side elevation of the reenforcement.

Fig. III is an enlarged detail view showing a portion of one of the reinforcing bars, and portions of a. spacing device whereby the coils of a reinforcing spiral are secured.

Fig. IV is a side elevation of the bar and spacing device, the coils being shown in section.

Fig. V is a transverse section on the line V-V, Fig. III.

Fig. VI is a perspective view of a tool adapted to contract the gripping eyes of the spacing device.

Te illustrate the invention I have shown spacing devices applied to a metal reenforcement for a concrete column, and this reenforcementincludes a reinforcing member A in the form of a long spiral, and bars B arranged longitudinally of the spiral and engaged with the inner faces of the coils of the spiral. These coils are accurately spaced apart and secured to the longitudinal bars through the medium of the spacing device. v

To illustrate this feature of the invention, I have shown a long spacer associated with each bar B. Each spacer is made of a single piece of wire provided with a row of gripping eyes 1 surrounding one of the bars B,

and a row of spacing elements C uniting said gripping eyes, said row of spacing eleglen'ts being arranged longitudinally of the Each spacing element C is provided with a'U-shaped loop 4, preferably formed at a point adjacent to one of the gripping eyes 1, and a straight portion 5 extending from said loop 4 to the next lower gripping eye 1. Each gripping eye 1 is in the form of a' yieldable coil having an abrupt abutment 6 at its end, these abutments being formed at the junction of the coils and the straight portion 5 of the spacing elements, as shown in Fig. III. I will hereafter refer to a vtool which engages the abutments 6 and the loops 4: to contract the gripping eyes 1 onto the rods B.

In each spacing device, the eyes 1 are in alinement with each other, and the loops 4 are. also. in alinement with each other.

The loops 4: extend from one side of the spacing device and the eyes I extend from the other side. The loops 4 are open at the side from which the eyes 1 extend (Fig. IV) and each eye 1 is arranged at approximately a right angle to the loops.

In assembling thereenforcements, one of the long spacing wires is applied to the long spiral A, the coils of the spiral being arranged within the open loops t so as to locate the alined eyes 1 inside of the spiral. After this has been done, a long bar B is inserted through the alined eyes 1 to confine the coils in the U-shaped loops at, the open sides of the loops being closed by the bar B, as shown in Fig. IV. The loops 1 are then contracted to grip the bars B. It is not necessary to contract all of the gripping eyes, 1, for several of these eyes are integrally connected together, and if a few of theniare contracted, the spacing device will be securely held on the rod.

Fig. VI illustrates a contracting tool preferably made of a single piece of metal and having a stem 8 provided with an operating handle 9 at one end and an abutment finger 10 and an extension 11 extending from the other end. To tighten one of the gripping eyes 1, the abutment finger 10 is applied to the abrupt abutmentfi and the extension 11 is caused to engage the loop 4 as shown in Figs. III and IV, and the tool is then turned to contract the gripping eye onto the bar The straight portions 5 of the spacing elements are well adapted to resist any longitudinal thrusts imparted to the bars B, and these straight portions merge into the overlapping ends of the gripping eyes 1, so as to effectively prevent displacement of the coils of the spiral.

The gripping eyes 1 are preferably formed by alternate right and left coils which are united by the spacing elements C, as shown in Fig. III.

I claim:

1. In a reenforcing structure, a series of reenforcing elements, a bar crossing said reenforcing elements, and a spacer comprising eyes in which said bar is mounted, spacing elements uniting said eyes, and loops. ex tending from said spacing elements and embracing said reenforcing elements, each of said loops being formed between two of said eyes and each of said spacing elements having a straight portion extending from one of said loops to one of said eyes.

2. In a reenforcing structure, a series of reenforcing elements, a bar crossing said reenforcing elements, and a spacer comprising eyes in which said bar is mounted, spacing elements uniting said eyes, and loops extending from said spacing elements and embracing said reenforcing elements, said loops and eyes being extended from opposite sides of said spacing elements, each of said loops being at a point adjacent to one of said eyes and each of said spacing elements being provided with a straight portion arranged longitudinally of said bar and extending from one of said loops to one of said eyes.

3. In a reenforcing structure, a series of reenforcing elements, a bar crossing said reenforcing elements, and a spacer comprising eyes in which said bar is mounted, spacing elements uniting said eyes, and loops extending from said spacing elements and embracing said reenforcing elements, each of said eyes having an abutment oppositely disposed with relation to one of said loops, said abutment and loop being adapted to receive a tool for contracting the eyes onto the bar.

l. In a reenforcing structure, a series of reenforcing elements, a bar crossing said reenforcing elements, and a spacer comprising eyes in which said bar is mounted, spacing elements uniting said eyes, and loops extending from said spacing elements and embracing said reenforcing elements, each of said eyes being in the form of a yieldable coil provided with an abutment at its end, said abutment being formed at the junction of one of the spacing'elements and the end of a coil and being oppositely disposed with relation to one of said loops, said abutment and loop being adapted to receive a tool for contracting the coil, and all of said eyes, loops and spacing elements being made of a single piece of wire.

5. In a reenforcing structure, a series of reenforcing elements, a bar crossing said reenforcing elements, and a spacer comprising eyes in which said bar is mounted, spacing elements uniting said eyes, and loops ex tending from said spacing elements and embracing said reenforcing elements, each of said loops being formed between two of said eyes, each eye being in the form of a con tractible coil having an abrupt abutment at its end, said abutment being oppositely disposed with relation to one of said loops, said abutment and loop being adapted to receive a contracting tool, and each of said spacing elements having a. straight portion extending from one of the ends of one of said loops to one of said abutments.

6. In a spacing device adapted to secure longitudinal bars to encircling elements, a spacer comprising a row of gripping eyes alined with each other longitudinally of the spacer and adapted to receive a longitudinal bar, and a row of spacing elements separating said gripping eyes and formed integral therewith, said spacing elements being provided with loops for the reception of said encircling elements, said row of gripping eyes being in the form of coils extending from said spacing elements and arranged approximately at a right angle to said loops,

and said row of spacing elements being arranged longitudinally of the spacer.

7. In a spacing device adapted to secure longitudinal bars to encircling elements of a concrete reenforcement, a spacer comprising a row of eyes in the form of coils alined with each other longitudinally of the spacer and adapted to surround the longitudinal bar, and a row of spacing elements arranged longitudinally of said spacer and integrally connected to all of said grippingeyes, said spacing elements being extended to form loops for the reception of said encircling elements, said loops and eyes being extended from opposite sides of said spacing elements, said loops being open at the side from Which the eyes extend, and each of said eyes being arranged at approximately a right angle to the loops and adapted to be tightened on the longitudinal bar.

8. In a spacing device adapted tosecure longitudinal bars to encircling elements, a spacer comprising a row of gripping eyes alined with each other longitudinally of the spacer and adapted to receive a longitudinal bar, and a row of spacing elements separating said gripping eyes and formed integral therewith said spacing elements being provided with loops for the reception of said encircling elements, and said gripping eyes being in the form of right and left helical coils adapted to be tightened on the longitudinal bar.

9. In a spacing device adapted to secure longitudinal bars to encircling elements, a s acer comprising a row of gripping eyes a ined with each other longitudinally of the spacer and adapted to receive a longitudinal bar, and a row of spacing elements separating said gripping eyes and formed integral therewith, said spacing elements being provided with loops for the reception of said encircling elements, and said gripping eyes being in the form of right and left helical coils adapted to surround the longitudinal bar and adapted to be contracted to grip the bar.

10. In a spacing device adapted to secure longitudinal bars to encircling elements, a spacer comprising a row of gripping eyes alined with each other longitudinally of the spacer and adapted to receive a longitudinal bar, a row of spacing elements arranged longitudinally of said spacer and separating said gripping eyes, said spacing elements being provided with loops for the reception of said encircling elements, and said gripping eyes, spacing elements and loops being made of a single piece of Wire.

11. In a spacing device adapted to secure longitudinal bars to encircling elements, a spacer comprising a row of gripping eyes alined with each other longitudinally of the spacer and adapted to receive a longitudinal bar, and a row of spacing elements separating said gripping eyes and formed integral therewith, said spacing elements being arranged longitudinally of said spacer and provided with loops for the reception of said encircling elements, and said gripping eyes being in the form of coils provided with a-butments adapted to receive a tool for tightening them on the longitudinal bar.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing I hereunto afiix my signature.

JAMES C. SHEPHERD. 

